2/25/2008
Christmas in the Country Story
Local artist Thelma Winter is pleased to have been an exhibitor at Christmas in the Country for 10 years. She has been fortunate to be part of the growth of Premier Promotions shows - pleased for their success, even while enjoying her own. At age 53, Thelma Winter first picked up a paintbrush and began to create beautiful scenes of the world around her, having had virtually no training or instruction. In 1983, she gathered her paintings and her courage and set up at her first art show. It was rewarding and exciting when she realized how well her work was received. The joy that her paintings brought both herself and others encouraged her to invest more and more time, effort and energy into creating the showing her works of art. Thelma's art begins long before she picks up a brush. She travels many miles searching out beautiful old homes, barns, covered bridges, gardens, etc., being especially conscious of light quality, seasons and backgrounds. She spends many hours poring over the thousands of slides she has taken to choose her subjects. Once she has made the decision, Thelma begins sketching in pencil. Using her slide for reference, she creates a detailed drawing in pen and ink with a technical pen in waterproof ink. Adding color with transparent watercolor is her favorite part of the process. The detail, depth, brilliant colors and nostalgic subjects are key to Thelma's unique view of the world. She is well known for charming sleigh ride scenes set amidst the enchantment of the Chautauqua Institution. After two memorable trips to Ireland, she has added many noteworthy scenes from that delightful land, including thatched cottages with lovely gardens. A collection of lighthouse paintings and of covered bridges has also been very popular. |
Over the years, Thelma's painting has earned
her much recognition - dozens of ribbons, several Best of Shows,
and the prestigious Purchase Award at Buffalo's Allentown Art
Festival. She has shown her art work at the Festival of the Masters
in Disney World, the Salmagundi Club in New York City, the National
Arts for the Parks Exhibit in Wyoming, the highly acclaimed Long's
Park Show in Lancaster, Pennsylvania and hundreds of other exhibitions
throughout the northeast.
In 1997 and 1998 she had several Paintings chosen by the Current Company to be used for note cards and Christmas cards. At the request of the management of the Erie County Fair, she has done a series of Paintings using the midway, carousel, clowns and agriculture displays as inspiration. One of these was used on the poster and program for the 1997 Erie County Fair. In 1999, she was honored by a commission from WQLN, the public broadcasting station in Erie, PA, to do the exclusive painting for their auction. Her piece, "Hitching A Ride" was printed in a special edition of only 54 and used as the centerpiece for their fundraising effort. Thanks to her computer savvy son-in-law, she has recently developed her own web site at www.thelmawinter.com, complete with on-line ordering. It has opened her work up to new art lovers around the world, and allowed all to view and purchase prints without even attending an art show! Thelma is constantly finding new sources of inspiration for painting. Things are usually hopping at her place - with her daughter and neighbors working at mounting, matting, framing and loading up for her next out-of-town show, customers calling and stopping in ... life at her home studio is certainly never boring. It is especially exciting for her the two weekends before Christmas when she holds her annual Holiday Open House. She welcomes customers and admirers in during these days for a tour of her gallery and a peek at her work area, even offering a bit of a demonstration for those who'd care to see. Her favorite part of it all, though, will always be the hours she spends creating her newest watercolor painting. Thelma finds her work to be incredibly rewarding and the best "retirement" she could have imagined! Agri-Center FS&G |